Crown observer Lindsay McKenzie was appointed to watch over Wellington City Council last year. Composite photo / NZME
The Government’s watchdog at Wellington City Council has officially finished his observing, with Lindsay McKenzie saying Tory Whanau has made the right decision “for her” not to seek re-election as mayor.
Late last year then-Local Government Minister Simeon Brown decided to intervene after Wellington City Council stopped the controversial sale of its 34% share in the airport – upending its Long Term Plan (LTP).
At the time Brown said the Government was “very concerned because it looks like a shambles.”
McKenzie, the former chief executive of the Tasman District Council and Gisborne District Council, started as a Crown observer at Wellington City Council in November. He penned his final report this week.
Speaking to Newstalk ZB Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills, McKenzie said the council has improved “significantly” since his appointment.
He said the problems which caused the Government to intervene in the first place have been solved, as have tolerance and interpersonal relationships between councillors.
Asked by Mills whether he thought Mayor Tory Whanau is an effective leader, McKenzie said “it’s a tough ask for somebody to come into a mayoral role, especially in the capital city, with no local government experience and I think that showed, she’d probably admit that”.
When asked whether Whanau had made the right call in deciding not to stand again, McKenzie said “for her, yes”.
Whanau announced she was quitting the mayoral race in April after previously saying she was keen to serve three terms and had received the Green Party endorsement for the mayoralty.
When speaking about her decision not to seek re-election Whanau admitted that she personally had become a “distraction” – one that threatened to undermine what she wanted to achieve.
Since then, she has spoken out about the online abuse and harassment she faced over her term, saying it is an issue that will deter women and marginalised communities from standing for public office.
McKenzie said politics has long been a feature of the council and while “not uniquely a Wellington thing” was more evident at Wellington City Council.
McKenzie wrote a report in May warning of the risks of party politics around the council table, but says he is generally ambivalent on the issue.
During his time McKenzie wrote six reports to the Local Government Minister and five to the council, as well as providing constant advice to councillors in what he described as a “below the radar” way.
In his final report McKenzie states he does not believe further Government intervention is needed.
“I recommend that the Minister maintains a watching brief over Wellington City Council while the key decisions to implement the amended Long-term Plan are taken and the water services delivery plan is submitted”, the report states.
“There are no other matters that the Terms of Reference specifically required to be addressed” he said.
McKenzie also noted he worked on “some interpersonal difficulties both historic and recent, opening communication lines where barriers existed, acting as a go between and ‘honest broker’ and generally assisting to de-escalate issues that, a year or so earlier, could have led to formal complaints“.
The Herald earlier revealed McKenzie was paid $1000 a day for the role.
The council, to the disappointment of Mayor Tory Whanau, foot the bill for the observer, costing ratepayers $71,754.70 before GST as of this week, but his final invoice has not yet been received.
$12,494.70 of that was for travel, with McKenzie residing in Nelson. $385 was spent on his office set up.
Mayor Tory Whanau has thanked McKenzie “for his professionalism, impartial advice, and valuable insights” as the council worked to pass its Long Term Plan.
“The Observer’s final report shows that Wellington City Council has worked through the challenges in a robust and democratic way, getting near consensus on many key votes. I was always confident that our Council would do so, and I hope this helps rebuild public confidence in the Council’s decision-making and processes”, Whanau said.
Ethan Manera is a New Zealand Herald journalist based in Wellington. He joined NZME in 2023 as a broadcast journalist with Newstalk ZB and is interested in local issues, politics, and property in the capital. He can be emailed at ethan.manera@nzme.co.nz.